1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to swimming pool covers for in-ground, interior pools.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Swimming pool covers that will lift out of position have been known in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 3,566,420, issued to Peterson et al. on Mar. 2, 1971 comprises a combination pool cover and submergible dressing room. The cover is raised up and down with hydraulic cylinders that are embedded in the walls of the pool, and that a hand crank arrangement using pulleys can be used in place of the hydraulic cylinders to raise and lower the cover. In any event, however, it includes a dome type roof for shedding rain, but with the moving mechanism recessed below the level of the ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,293, issued to Aine on Mar. 14, 1978 shows a rigid swimming pool cover that is made out of suitable material and fits against the edges of the pool to provide a shield for keeping debris and the like out of the pool. Several variations of the pool cover are shown, and each shows a type of a foam material. This too is for outdoor pools, and deals with the forming of the cover. A lifting mechanism for the cover is shown in FIG. 4 of the patent which comprises a type of a drive including a chain that will move a column upwardly to lift the cover.
Ceilings which raise and lower are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,567, issued Feb. 8, 1977 to Flannery wherein a false ceiling is supported in a parallel spaced relationship to the floor and can be moved up and down by operating electric motors. It is used for varying the height of the ceiling, but not for covering any pool.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,385 also shows a portable room that has a movable ceiling or cover for this room that can be raised and lowered once the partitions forming the room are in place.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,135,259, issued Jan. 23, 1979 to Scardenzan shows a deck structure that is used as a pool cover and is disclosed as being capable of supporting weight. It can serve as a deck in either the open or closed positions. Linkages are used for supporting the cover and a hydraulic cylinder is actuated for pivoting the linkage to raise and lower the cover.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,114,153, issued Dec. 17, 1963 to Pierson, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,118,148, issued Jan. 21, 1964 to Taylor et al. show combination devices that can be swimming pools or bomb shelters and have covers. U.S. Pat. No. 3,114,153 shows a cover that is used for supporting weight and which rolls into place on rollers. In other words it is offset laterally when it is in its open position oncovering the pool or shelter. U.S. Pat. No. 3,118,148 shows a cover that is folded in sections like a "accordian".
U.S. Pat. No. 3,091,777, issued to Pearlson on June 4, 1963 shows a swimming pool cover that is submerged, and comes up from the bottom of the pool so that during use it forms the bottom of the pool, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,106,134, issued to Schiron et al. on Aug. 15, 1978 also shows a false bottom or floor that lifts up to form a type of a cover, and during use is at the bottom of the pool.